


Spellset

by elatedroses



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, M/M, Other, anxious!aziraphale, nb!crowley, wizard!crowley
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-24
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-07-17 23:30:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,291
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19965013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elatedroses/pseuds/elatedroses
Summary: Aziraphale's new neighbor seems almost magical.





	1. Caught In A Landslide

Aziraphale's garden had floundered away for the _third_ time.

Technically, it'd be a bit of a stretch to call it a garden, because it was only a collection of potted plants. But he'd always wanted a garden, and the small balcony of his on-the-cheaper-side apartment could only allow for so much.

_I guess I have to find some hardier ones_ , Aziraphale thought to himself. _Maybe some desert plants_.

He took each plant to the sink one at a time, trying to salvage any parts that still seemed alive. He ended up with two mason jars' worth of clippings and or the nearly deceased. He set them on the window above the sink, speculating that the air conditioning might do them some good.

"Shit, is it time already?" Aziraphale bustled around the apartment, searching for an acceptable shirt and his bowtie. He'd just recently started a new job at a bookstore, and so far it had been going great. He loved to read, and the shop was rather cozy. Losing this job was not an option.

He attempted multi-tasking buttoning up his shirt and tying his shoes, but it ended up going poorly. Rubbing the place where his forehead had knocked into the corner of a shelf, he decided to try the buttoning first.

Once he had gotten a hold of himself and he looked somewhat presentable, he checked for his phone, wallet, and keys, and headed for the door. _Ms. Tracy did mention that there had been a break-in downstairs_... He double-checked the lock.

Aziraphale, naturally a _very_ fast walker, almost kissed the floor when his feet caught on some boxes. He rebalanced himself, and realized that someone had left a box right in front of his door! Now that he noticed, there were a bunch of boxes left all over the hallway. Aziraphale let out a tired, heavy sigh. He did recall Ms. Tracy mentioning that there would be someone moving into the apartment next to him. _New neighbors? They better not be like the last ones_...

The previous occupants of the apartment beside his had been a young couple whose attitudes toward each other changed faster than lightning. One night they'd be screaming at each other, and the next Aziraphale would be blushing at their raucous moaning. It was always a very passionate affair. Aziraphale had never lived with a partner, so he wouldn't know what it was like, but his noisy neighbors had certainly made him resent the thought. In fact, he wasn't sure if he felt comfortable _having_ a partner at all. Not after what happened last time.

As Aziraphale navigated through the forest of cardboard, a figure appeared at the door of the apartment next to his. The first feature that caught his eye was their red, curly hair, not entirely collected into a bun. But the next..

_..is that a robe?_

It was not any old bathing robe. The garment was navy colored, and had hundreds of tiny little stars littered over it. It looked shiny; Aziraphale wanted to reach out and rub it between his fingers. He had to wrap his hand around the wrist of the other - his arm had begun to move of its own accord.

"Oh, hello!" The stranger had noticed him. Their voice reminded him of alcohol, because it was warm but also burningly bubbly. Aziraphale blushed; he wasn't exactly the best at introductions.

"Hi," Aziraphale got out.

They glanced toward his door. "You live there?"

Aziraphale nodded. It was quick, and it may have been too much. _I better not make a fool of myself if this is my new neighbor_. He gripped his wrist tighter; his palm was sweating.

The maybe-new-neighbor smiled a little. "Nice to meet you. I'm..." They paused, gazing into the distance for a moment. "Crowley. Call me Crowley."

Crowley stuck a hand out, and Aziraphale stepped over a box to get closer to it. He tried to subtly wipe his hands on his pants, but _oh gosh I bet he noticed and thinks I'm a complete_ nutter _now..._

As he shook their hand, he noticed at least three rings adorning their fingers. Glancing downward, multicolored gemstones glittered enchantingly. Aziraphale hastily ripped his hand away, not wanted to embarrass himself any more than he already had.

"Sorry - ah, I'm Aziraphale Eden. I, uh, I live next door." _Dammit, Aziraphale!_ He wanted to slap himself.

But Crowley hadn't really seemed to notice any of the things that Aziraphale was so busy beating himself up over, and if they had, then they weren't showing it. They stared at their feet and bit at their lip, not knowing what to say.

Aziraphale took his body by the reins and snapped. "I hope you will like living here it's very nice good rent and an okay area too!" All of his words tumbled and tripped over each other, and he cringed. His head was starting to hurt where he'd hit it, but that may have just been the situation burrowing into his brain, his regrettable actions drilling through his thoughts.

Crowley raised their eyebrows, but the rest of their face was warm. An even bigger smile wormed its way up onto their face until Aziraphale saw teeth.

"You're cute," Crowley chirped, beaming straight at Aziraphale

_What is HAPPENING??_

Aziraphale was hot all over, and not in a very sexual way. As if it couldn't get any worse! This new person just went and _complimented_ him! How was he expected to handle _that?_

He most definitely did not know how to handle this situation. He was sure that his face was completely red _now_. He muttered some attempt at a goodbye and hurried himself down the stairs.

Once Aziraphale reached the first floor, he dug in his pockets for his phone and earbuds. Evading Ms. Tracy, who was at the desk, he stuck the two earbuds into his ears. He faintly heard her say something about how wearing headphones wasn't safe, but he was already out of the doors.

He shuffled a playlist that he'd put together some time ago, a familiar song echoing into his thoughts. It was a song called _Bad Ideas_ by Tessa Violet, and listening to it was making him feel more red.

_Well, that went down like a lead balloon_. With a shaky sigh, he made his way to work, his mind lingering on the dazzling stranger who called him cute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AH! all the italics went missing because of a formatting error. I just restored them. so sorry and hope you enjoy reading <3


	2. Here We Stand Or Here We Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aziraphale just met his new neighbor and already made a fool of himself, and now he has to go back home.

"Thank you for coming to Books Beyond!" Aziraphale was ringing up the last customer of the evening. Though it hadn't been busy, work had been a welcome distraction from the entire ordeal that had occurred just hours earlier. 

He was still rather flustered over it all. After all, it wasn't every day that Aziraphale was meeting someone that he'd have to make nice with for an indefinite amount of time. And it _definitely_ wasn't every day that he'd get _complimented_. He just didn't know what to do with himself.

Aziraphale tidied up around the store; he was expected to lock up, and then he could make his way home to a nice hot chocolate and Netflix binge. It was how he coped. 

Once he had locked up the store, he turned and started toward his apartment. He decided to heed Ms. Tracy's warning just this once and held back from fishing out his earbuds.

_My, it is dark_. There were not many cars out, and even less people. Aziraphale let his thoughts puddle around a bit, almost like small talk, but within his own mind, and to himself. If they stumbled upon a certain new tenant of apartment number 403, then he'd step on the brakes. But wait - just by denying himself from thinking about them, he had _thought_ about them. _Dammit_.

Instead of losing himself to the crevice of his mind, he started counting his steps. If his thoughts had any say in the matter, he would just think-count louder.

_Seventy-seven, seventy-eight, seventy-nine..._ Aziraphale had reached his apartment complex. He took a deep breath and ducked inside. 

Ms. Tracy was no longer at the desk, which didn't surprise him. It was just past ten thirty, so she was probably holed up in her own place drinking tea or doing something like that. 

Next up were the stairs. Aziraphale started think-counting louder. His legs weren't at jello levels yet, but they were getting there. _Breathe. Oxygen. You can do this_.

He had been zoning out so hard that he almost started for the fifth floor before everything came back to him in a great punch to his lungs. He grasped his heart and stole a huge, choking breath. It made him feel sick. 

_My apartment is literally_ right _there. I can do this_.

"Hey, are you okay?"

There was an audible scream in Aziraphale's mind, and it nestled into his face.

"I heard something, wanted to make sure nobody was, ah, dying, or something." Crowley was leaning against their doorway, robe abandoned for striped pajama pants and a tank top. Aziraphale blushed at the exposed skin, but he didn't have time to see what his exact thoughts were on the matter. He was much too... preoccupied. With himself. And the brand new shitstorm he had just made for himself. 

"I'm, ah-" Aziraphale felt dizzy. He swayed a little, some absurd part of his mind comparing it to a little hula dance. 

Crowley stepped over - danced, they moved like they were _dancing_ \- and set a hand on Aziraphale's shoulder. "Would you like some tea or something?"

The only thing that Aziraphale could think about was how, where Crowley was touching him, it felt like there were roots growing beneath his skin. Like Crowley was growing flowers in him. A brand new garden. _I'm.. not the best with gardens.._

"Hey," Crowley whispered, their brows furrowing. They set their other hand on Aziraphale's opposite shoulder and held him steady. "It's okay."

And with two new gardens in his shoulders and a heart ramming against his skin, Aziraphale fainted.

-

He dreamed of picnicking in a dense forest. Crowley was there. They both had plates of sandwiches. There were potato chips. He didn't know what was in the sandwiches - he barely knew his own name. He was _dreaming_.

"Come here often?" Crowley asked, popping a chip into their mouth. 

"What? Oh, I guess so." Aziraphale looked at a cloud. It looked like _something_. Ah! A kangaroo. It definitely looked like a kangaroo

"Talking is pretty rough." Crowley's voice echoed, and Aziraphale wanted to reach out to the soundwaves and catch them like butterflies.

"Anxious, anxious. Hm." He was puzzled - it felt like he was forgetting something very important.

"I have some hot chocolate if you want," Crowley offered. There was that echoing again. Aziraphale wondered if there was something wrong with the sound. 

Crowley leaned closer to Aziraphale, which he had no describable feelings about. "You have to wake up to have some though." Their breath was cool and hot at the same time. It reminded Aziraphale of lemons. 

"I don't know. We're having such a lovely time, aren't we?" Aziraphale smiled. Crowley half-smiled back, then looked down and shook their head. 

"You have to wake up. I don't even know your name." Their head tilted to the side, which Aziraphale found hilarious for some reason. He laughed and laughed about it, and Crowley's face turned sour. _Hah, lemon_.

But then there was a great earthquake. He wasn't laughing anymore. He was leaving the meadow, being pulled out by some great force. 

He looked at Crowley and reached out. "Will I ever see you again?"

Crowley smiled. It was a very assured, almost seductive smile. "I'm right here, darling."

-

Darkness. There was so much warmth, but there was still darkness. Sensory knowledge came back to Aziraphale slowly, and in waves. He gradually realized that he was laying on some sort of couch, because his head was on something not-really-comfortable, and his neck was starting to hurt. He felt _soft_. Whatever he was wrapped in was extremely soft. Soft and warm. _Comfortable_.

Aziraphale sighed, deciding not to open his eyes. He must have passed out onto his couch. Yes, that's it. And the reason why he couldn't remember it was because he was so out of his mind. Of course that's what happened. 

But there was someone else in his apartment. 

He could hear them softly singing. 

_Oh, fuck! What should I do? Get up and threaten them? Hit them? Do I even have anything that could be used as a weapon? Pretend I'm asleep?_

Aziraphale leaned toward the lazier and safer option, and now was steeling his eyes shut. He was still groggy, so it wasn't too hard.

"Beautiful dreamer, wake unto me

Starlight and dewdrops are waiting for thee."

_What the heck is that?_ Aziraphale recognized the song, but he didn't know from where. He knew even less why there was somebody in his apartment. And that they were singing.

He wasn't freaking out, but he _was_ freaking out. It was war in his mind, which pleaded with his body to just _hold still, but not_ too _still!_

"Beautiful dreamer, awake unto me." 

Aziraphale's eyes opened, but not because he wanted them to. They had been pried open as soon as the singer had finished that last verse. Which was _weird_. But very shortly after his eyes had been opened, he realized that he was _not_ in his apartment.

He also realized that Crowley was the person present. The person that was singing.

"Sleep well?" They asked. Aziraphale surveyed the area and concluded that he was in Crowley's apartment. On their couch. _Oh no_.

"Uhm, ah, yeah, I guess," Aziraphale fumbled, the words all coming together but not in quite the right way. "Ah, what happened?"

Crowley was standing across the room from Aziraphale's place on the couch, leaning against a wall. _They sure do like the whole leaning business. It's kind of distracting_.

"Well, you didn't look too good, and you kinda-" They paused to make a pop sound. The tiniest urge to giggle was quenched by Aziraphale. "-passed out."

"I _fainted?_ " Aziraphale's hands flew up to his face in order to both comfort himself and hide himself. _Well, it got worse_. "I'm so _so_ sorry about that-" Aziraphale visualized plugging his mouth, like with a pacifier. It actually worked, because he shut up.

"What? No, no, it's all fine. I'm just glad that you're okay." The look in Crowley's eyes conveyed that they knew more than they let on. Aziraphale raised an eyebrow - anxiety can't ruin _everything_ , and apparently curiosity was one of those things at this particular moment.

Crowley smiled, the hidden knowledge glinting in their eyes still tickling Aziraphale's brain. They spun off on their heel and walked into a room behind the wall, which Aziraphale guessed was the kitchen. It was how his apartment was laid out, after all. "I have some hot chocolate. Come here."

Aziraphale felt a tingling all over, as his body was pulling him to the kitchen. He braced himself. A whisper came from the kitchen, and he felt normal again. 

"You know, if you want. It's not the best but it'll do," Crowley called from the kitchen. 

Aziraphale sat up and stretched himself out, hearing his neck crack and wincing. He stood up and stretched some more. 

_This is insane. This is insane. If I keep thinking then I will absolutely_ go insane.

So he made his way toward the kitchen, not thinking at all.


	3. In Conversation, He Spoke Just Like A Baroness

Aziraphale, on complete autopilot now, sat at a table. It was small - everything was small, because these apartments can't afford for much larger. There were still cardboard boxes littering the counters and floor. Crowley was faced away from him, putting two cups of water into the microwave, which was the only unpacked item on the counter. 

"Do you want marshmallows or no?" Crowley looked over their shoulder, raising eyebrows at Aziraphale. Their eyes met and Aziraphale's heart did a little tap dance.

But he wasn't going to pay attention to that.

"Uh, hmm..." He busied his gaze onto his hands, which had subconsciously clasped and were turning white. He glared at them. "Sure."

"Kay." Crowley poured the packets into the cups and stirred for a minute. They then turned and set one cup in front of Aziraphale, sitting down across from him and warming their hands with their own.

There was a moment of silence that was full of many things, but mostly it was just awkward. Aziraphale sipped the hot chocolate - it was comforting.

"So, what should I call you?" Crowley asked.

"What?" A wisp of confusion threaded through Aziraphale's brain. _Was I so out of it that I didn't introduce myself? That doesn't sound like me at all..._ "Did I not, uh-"

Crowley's eyes darted away from him. "I may have, ah, zoned out a bit."

His thoughts took a moment to be still, because where were they supposed to go with _that?_ He could smile, slap the table, and let rip a big "Haha, same!" and then die in a pit somewhere. Or he could just sit there.

Anxiety is rather exhausting, which is why Aziraphale almost always opts for the easier option.

"Oh, well, I can't really blame you after what happened all with tonight." The last thing that Aziraphale needed was for this new person to be upset with him. He was in their apartment, after all. For all he knew, there could be a bunch of knives in those boxes. 

"I remembered that it was an 'az' sound at the beginning but I guess I was somewhere else." Crowley hid behind a sip of their hot chocolate. They weren't turning red, but the rest of their face was acting like it was blushing. 

"It's Aziraphale. It's a strange name, really..." His voice had grown small. Aziraphale didn't want to pursue that topic any further. 

Crowley grinned. "It's a lovely name. It suits you."

Aziraphale heated up. _Are they always going to do this compliments thing? Am I going to have to live like this? How on Earth am I expected to survive?_

Crowley cleared their throat, and Aziraphale had to physically clamp himself down to stop from jumping. He was starting to feel a bit faint. 

The face across from him twinged with concern. "Oh, no, please have a sip. Or at least let me help you back to the couch."

Aziraphale made a sound in his throat that he wasn't proud of. He figuratively shuffled all of the papers of his idiot body and straightened them out again. He sighed. "I'm so terribly sorry. My experience with _people_ is not the best. Things don't exactly go well."

_Now he's_ really _gonna think you're a lunatic! What is_ WRONG _with you??_

Aziraphale lifted a hand from the cup and rubbed his head. It felt delightful - a makeshift hot compress.

Crowley delicately traced an index finger around the rim of their cup, which Aziraphale was _not_ noticing in the slightest (Absolutely _not!_ ). 

"Well, ah, do you work or anything?" The words coming out of their mouth sounded like how Aziraphale felt. Jumbled and maybe even yearning for something.

"I work at a bookshop that's close to here," He paused. Something faint was beginning to dawn on him. "I'm not really all that nervous around them..."

He let the silence fertilize his thoughts, which were slowly drawing explanations for what he'd just claimed. Crowley sat and waited patiently, looking utterly fascinated by the person across from them. He took a sip of his hot chocolate.

Aziraphale unfurled the tapestry of his thoughts, his eyes no longer trying to-look-at-Crowley-to-be-polite-but-not- _too_ -much, but directed off into a wall. "I think that I adopt some sort of persona. It isn't personal, you know? So I don't really fret as much about it I guess..."

They both sat for a bit; the silence wasn't uncomfortable anymore. Aziraphale could feel the warmth of the drink starting to swirl up into his chest. A smile rose up on his face, akin to steam from a kettle.

_Now_ Crowley had turned red. They set their right elbow on the table and held their chin in the palm of the same hand, eyes still trained on Aziraphale. _Daydreaming pose_. Aziraphale tried, in vain, not to think of Ariana Grande. But it was too late.

"Do you like Ariana Grande?" He blurted out. 

Crowley looked amused. They rubbed their chin with their thumb. "Well... I don't _not_ like her," They concluded thoughtfully. 

Aziraphale closed his eyes. _Did I just_ SAY _that??_

He was interrupted from his soak in the self-loathing pooling around in his brain by - hold on. Were those _sparkles_ floating around Crowley's face? Like in movies??

"I mean, I remember hearing _thank u, next_ on the radio and it was okay. She was on Disney, right? I liked those shows."

Confidence snarled at the brain-pool and pulled the plug with maniacal laughter. Aziraphale grinned.

"Yes, she truly was fantastic, such a sweet girl. You should listen to her older music, it's poppy and quite comforting if I do say so myself.."

And that was all it took to spur them both forward. 

Aziraphale's confidence was blocking out any anxiety that he hadn't already quashed, and small talk was easier if he knew his way around it. Music - _that_ he knew.

They chatted about their favorite artists and albums, small breaks of silence for the both of them to sip their hot chocolate and recharge, and then pop back in with something like _What's your favorite Beatles album?_

Aziraphale hadn't felt this relaxed when talking to someone in _ages_. It was so nice that he almost forgot about the fact that he hadn't been home, that he didn't know what time it was, and that he was breaking every single rule he had set upon himself. Security had a way of dusting over the previously important bits.

Suddenly, there came a dinging from Crowley. They reached into a pocket from _somewhere_ and pulled out a cell phone. They raised their eyebrows. 

"Say, Aziraphale?"

"Hm?" He picked up his drink to sip from it, but realized that there was only a drop or two left in it. 

"Are you usually awake for the sunrise?"

He thought a moment. _Well..._ There had been times of late where the sun had come up and he had still been awake, but he'd never really _looked_ at the sunrise. It was more of a "Shit, the sun is up, I should go to bed" kind of ordeal. 

"Not to _see_ it, no."

Crowley beamed. Aziraphale was taken aback by how it was almost as if they were glowing, shining like the sun itself...

"You have to come see it! Come on, I'll take you to the roof." They reached for Aziraphale's cup and their own, standing up and placing them in the sink. "It's so beautiful, you'll love it."

Aziraphale stood up, his stiff muscles reminding him that he should be apprehensive. _Dangerous! You still don't know them!_

He quieted their claims, stretching out his legs. His heart rate was making him feel like he'd just taken six different types of drugs at once - so, euphoric. 

"Okay."

-

They had reached the roof of the building, having the good fortune not to run into anyone that might stop them. Aziraphale noticed that Crowley knew their way around; _they must come up here often_ , he thought.

The sky was just starting to lighten, the dark navy blues of the night shifting into the brighter hues of the day. 

Crowley sighed. Aziraphale glanced over and saw an expression of pure adoration as Crowley stared up at the sky. He softened, the television audience in his heart going _Awww_.

They caught his notice and held his gaze for a moment, making an embarrassed sound. Aziraphale guessed that they were pink, but couldn't confirm because it was still rather dark. 

"Over here." Crowley directed him to a risen slab of the roof that they could sit on. It was kind of small, but it would work. 

They perched on the makeshift seats, Crowley desperately trying to give Aziraphale space, even though to do so they'd be on the ground. 

The pair finally settled, eerily still and staring up at the sky, watching as it brightened and exposed new colors of itself. Aziraphale's heart was racing so fast that it could have won _two_ marathons at once - almost his entire side was pressed up against Crowley's.

The danger was finally starting to set in, and it wasn't because of typical fears of violence or ignorance. Aziraphale was starting to have _déjà vu_. His senses had been dulled by pleasantries, but his brain's screeching of the reminders were becoming deafening. 

"Here she comes," Crowley whispered, gesturing to the light peeking over the buildings of the city. Aziraphale took a deep breath to calm himself. 

Eventually, they had to stop looking, because it _is_ the sun. Their eyes migrated to each other. 

Crowley smiled a little bit. "Wasn't that cool?" They giggled. Aziraphale could smell the hot chocolate on their breath. Hell, their noses were _this close_ to touching. A returning smile tugged his face up, but he was otherwise terrified. 

"Yeah," He whispered, noticing that the distance between their noses was vanishing. He was shivering, but it wasn't only the morning chill.

Crowley closed their eyes, took a breath. They looked patient again. Invisible strings pulled Aziraphale's face closer to theirs, noses _definitely_ brushing at this point...

A sound ripped out of Aziraphale's throat. He shot up backwards, stumbling but catching himself, knees bent and arms out. He was panting.

Crowley had opened their eyes. "Are you o-" 

But before they could finish, Aziraphale was sprinting towards the stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so sorry for the long wait! school has started and I've been super busy. I do have some ideas to keep me going now, though! thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed <3


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